ASLC Devotions - Wednesday

Luke 7:33-35 Jesus said, 'For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say, “He has a demon”; the Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, “Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax-collectors and sinners!” Nevertheless, wisdom is vindicated by all her children.’

Jesus knew that sometimes you just can't win. You can't please all the people all the time. Wait, I think that was Abraham Lincoln who said that, but I think Jesus knew it anyway. He knew that people would criticize him no matter what he did. They criticized John the Baptist because he abstained from eating and drinking. And then they criticized Jesus because he ate and drank. No way to win. People who want to criticize you and tear you down will do it.

Nevertheless, wisdom is vindicated by all her children. In other words, you'll know wisdom when you see its fruits: its children. You'll know whether someone was wise (like Jesus) not by things on the outside like what they eat and drink, but by what kind of person he is - what kind of wisdom he lives and shares. Do not worry whether you are criticized or mocked. If you are on God's path, wisdom will be vindicated. Hold fast. Have faith. Be strong.

In Christ,
Pastor Seth

Visit http://www.allsaintspalatine.org for updated information and calendar. Worship with us this Saturday at 5 and Sunday at 9. Remember to be praying for our 35 Youth Gathering participants this week!

ASLC Devotions - Tuesday

Amos 9:2 Though they dig into Sheol,
   from there shall my hand take them;
though they climb up to heaven,
   from there I will bring them down.

God is in all places - good and basic Sunday School learning that's still useful and faith-building no matter how long it's been since you've seen the inside of a Sunday School classroom. God is in all places. There is no place you can go, no place you can even imagine, that God cannot be there with you.

Amos reminds the people that not only is God in all places - it's more than that. God is in all places SEEKING you. God is looking for you, reaching out for you. Even if you dug your own way into Sheol (the Hebrew place of the dead - think of Hades in your High School Greek mythology classes), God would be there to take you by the hand. No matter where you go, God is reaching out for you. There is no place you will go today that God isn't already there waiting for you.  There, now that meeting with your boss doesn't sound so bad, does it?

In Christ,
Pastor Seth

Visit http://www.allsaintspalatine.org for updated information and calendar. Worship with us this Saturday at 5 and Sunday at 9. Remember to be praying for our 35 Youth Gathering participants this week!

ASLC Devotions - Monday

Amos 5:4 For thus says the Lord to the house of Israel:
Seek me and live;

It sounds so simple, doesn't it? Frankly, it really is quite simple. Seek the Lord and live. That's it. We tend to make faith and church so complicated. We make it about good behavior and commandments and rules and regulations and procedures. We make it about memorizing Bible verses and creeds and confessions. We make it about feeling bad for all the things we don't do and the things we do do. When really, what it's about is: "seek the Lord and live."

Seek the Lord. And live your life. Seek the Lord. And live the life God intended for you. Seek the Lord. And live eternally. Seek the Lord. And live the life of the ages. That's all. Pretty simple. Seek the Lord today. And live.

In Christ,
Pastor Seth

Visit http://www.allsaintspalatine.org for updated information and calendar. Worship with us this Saturday at 5 and Sunday at 9. Remember to be praying for our 35 Youth Gathering participants this week!

ASLC Devotions -- Friday, July 13

Colossians 4:5-6

Conduct yourselves wisely towards outsiders, making the most of the time. ⁶Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer everyone.

Again today we hear from this message to the church at Colossae. These letters contained a lot of information – the writers made good use of the runner who would deliver the letter! These verses contain small nuggets of wisdom about conversation and connections that I think are timeless – conduct yourselves wisely and let your speech be gracious.

I have long said that I will put off a task that can be done later today or even tomorrow for the opportunity to spend time with friends, talking. I’d like to think that I’m making the most of the time together (when in reality I’m often just procrastinating!), but there is value in spending time together – with insiders and outsiders, new friends and old. I treasure those times as opportunities for gracious speech, and hope you do, too.

Peace,

Pastor Jenn

ASLC Devotions -- Thursday, July 12

Colossians 2:1-5

For I want you to know how much I am struggling for you, and for those in Laodicea, and for all who have not seen me face to face. ²I want their hearts to be encouraged and united in love, so that they may have all the riches of assured understanding and have the knowledge of God’s mystery, that is, Christ himself, ³in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. ⁴I am saying this so that no one may deceive you with plausible arguments. ⁵For though I am absent in body, yet I am with you in spirit, and I rejoice to see your morale and the firmness of your faith in Christ.

Reading these letters to the various churches gives us a little bit of insight to how the community struggled, and what encouragement came from these messages. The writer of this letter (either Paul or a disciple of Paul, scholars are uncertain) wants the Christians living in Colossae to know that they are united with Christ, regardless of what others might be teaching them.

There were an abundance of false teachers at the time, and given how these communities were often isolated from other believers, letters with such messages were important to them. I don’t know that we’re as concerned with such things, today, but I take comfort in the words of this letter regardless. It is always helpful to hear words of solidarity in faith from someone cheering for you. Let us rejoice together!

Peace,

Pastor Jenn

ASLC Devotions -- Wednesday, July 11

John 7:1-9

After this Jesus went about in Galilee. He did not wish to go about in Judea because the Jews were looking for an opportunity to kill him. Now the Jewish festival of Booths was near. So his brothers said to him, "Leave here and go to Judea so that your disciples also may see the works you are doing; for no one who wants to be widely known acts in secret. If you do these things, show yourself to the world." (For not even his brothers believed in him.) Jesus said to them, "My time has not yet come, but your time is always here. The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify against it that its works are evil. Go to the festival yourselves. I am not going to this festival, for my time has not yet fully come." After saying this, he remained in Galilee.

His brothers said to him, “No one who wants to be widely known acts in secret.” But Jesus responds that his time has not yet come (be patient!). Go to the festival yourselves, he tells them. Over and over in the gospels we hear Jesus tell someone he has healed not to say a word to anyone, and it can be confusing. We, like his brothers, think that Jesus should want the world to know – after all, isn’t this good news, these healings that he’s doing?

It can be difficult to hear Jesus say “My time has not yet come” and to understand what that means. In the same line as yesterday, I’m not that patient to just sit around and wait – I want the world to know these amazing things! But of course, Jesus won’t be rushed, and he speaks to truths and wisdom far greater than anything the brothers or we can imagine.

Peace,

Pastor Jenn

ASLC Devotions -- Tuesday, July 10

James 5:7

7 Be patient, therefore, beloved, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious crop from the earth, being patient with it until it receives the early and the late rains.

Patience is not always my strength. Sure, I have my moments – I don’t snoop at my Christmas presents, for instance, and I can often be patient with other people. But by and large, I like things to happen… now. Or maybe already. I know that it doesn’t do any good to be impatient, and at times can make things worse at least in my own mind.

The verses in James go on to say that the day of the Lord is near; be patient. I am not anxious for the day of the Lord; I just figure it’s not mine to know. And perhaps I would be wise to adopt such an attitude for other things in my life, too. I’ll try. How about you?

Peace,

Pastor Jenn